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Evangeline (Evie) Lapalme (she/her)
Major: Geography
Concentration: Resources, Economy and Environment
Minor: Archaeology
Certificate: Geographic Information Science
Post-secondary doesn't have to be a straight path.
Even if you already know what path you want to take. Evie always knew that she liked maps. When she was little, her dream was to be an architect. In high school, Evie convinced her drafting teacher to let her learn how to make maps, and this led to pursuing her associate’s degree in geography at Langara College.
While at Langara, Evie really liked her course in Geographical Information Science (GIS), where she learned about spatial data analysis. After graduating, she chose to continue her studies at SFU because not only did most of her credits transfer over to her program, the SFU Department of Geography also offered a GIS certificate. Additionally, SFU’s co-operative education program even helped Evie gain experience doing GIS work for Environment Canada.
“I think coming from a college is a lot better than coming from high school, because it’s kind of like a stepping stone.”
Evie advises students thinking of transferring to get involved. Like many students in the Faculty of Environment, Evie was involved in the student community on campus as part of the Geography Student Union and Tea Club. She also volunteered as a Welcome Leader, HIVE Leader, SPROUT frosh planner, and as an Environmentor. Having previous experience with online community-building, Evie even helped dozens of other SFU groups get established on Discord at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.
In addition to community involvement, Evie received a full scholarship to participate in the 2019 Hellenic Studies field school in Greece. The field school was perfect for Evie’s minor in archaeology.
From a love for maps to GIS, Evie’s journey shows how you can get involved while making the most of your journey.